CEO & Business Owner Advisory
Independent challenge. Commercial perspective. Better decisions.
When you're leading a business, there are plenty of people looking to you for answers. There are often fewer people you can turn to when you're the one who needs to think something through.
CEO & Business Owner Advisory gives CEOs, Managing Directors and business owners regular access to an experienced, independent adviser who can step back from the day-to-day, challenge your thinking and help you maintain focus on what matters most.
Led by Lydia McClelland, the service combines strategic challenge, commercial perspective, practical problem-solving and accountability in an ongoing advisory relationship.
It's about having an experienced and trusted person in your corner when you're making important decisions about your business.
Who is it For?
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CEO & Business Owner Advisory is designed for leaders who value an experienced external perspective on their business.
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It may be particularly valuable if:
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Your business is growing and becoming more complex
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You have ambitious plans but need greater clarity about how to achieve them
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You're navigating a period of growth, transition or change
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You're facing an important strategic or commercial decision
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You're spending too much time in the business and not enough time thinking about the business
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You have a leadership team but value an independent perspective outside it
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You're juggling multiple opportunities and need greater focus
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You want more accountability around your strategic priorities
What Can We Work On?
There is no predetermined agenda. Our conversations focus on what matters most to you and your business at that point in time.
Growth & Strategy
Where will future growth come from? Which opportunities should you pursue? What should you stop doing? Are your priorities and resources aligned with your ambitions?
Customers, Marketing & Sales
Are you targeting the right customers? Is your proposition strong enough? Is marketing making the contribution it should? Is your sales pipeline capable of supporting your growth plans?
People & Capability
Do you have the right people, skills and structure for the next stage of the business? Where are the capability gaps? What are you still doing that someone else should own?
Performance & Priorities
What is the business telling you? Which numbers really matter? Where should management attention be focused over the next 30, 60 or 90 days?
Leadership & Decision-Making
Sometimes you simply need a confidential space to test an idea, challenge an assumption or work through a difficult decision before taking it to your team or Board.
An Adviser Who Understands the Wider Business
Lydia brings experience from senior marketing, business development and general management roles, alongside her work advising organisations across the private, public and third sectors.
This breadth of experience allows her to look beyond one particular business discipline and consider the connections between strategy, customers, marketing, sales, people, finance, operations and growth.
The role isn't to tell you how to run your business.
It's to ask the right questions, bring an independent perspective, challenge your thinking and help you turn decisions into action.
How it Works
CEO & Business Owner Advisory is designed as an ongoing relationship, allowing Lydia to develop a deeper understanding of you, your business and your ambitions over time.
A typical arrangement includes:
Monthly Advisory Session
A focused one-to-one session to review progress, explore current challenges and agree priorities.
Strategic & Commercial Review
Regular review of the priorities, opportunities and key performance measures that matter to your business.
Actions & Accountability
Clear actions and commitments following each meeting, with progress reviewed at the next session.
Access Between Meetings
Access to Lydia by phone, email or WhatsApp when something arises that would benefit from a quick external perspective.
Quarterly Step-Back
Every three months, we take a broader view of the business: what's changing, what's working, what's getting in the way and where your attention needs to go next.
Advisory or Mentoring; What's the Difference?
Mentoring typically focuses primarily on you – your development, leadership, confidence and individual challenges.
CEO & Business Owner Advisory looks more broadly at you and the business.
We can move between strategic decisions, commercial performance, people, customers, marketing, sales and leadership depending on what the business requires.
Where a particular challenge requires specialist expertise or a defined consultancy project, that can be identified separately.
What Can You Expect?
The aim is straightforward:
Greater clarity. Better decisions. Sharper priorities. More accountability. Stronger commercial focus.
Most importantly, the relationship creates regular space to step away from immediate operational demands and think about where your business is going and what needs to happen next.
Start With a Conversation
Every advisory relationship starts with understanding where you are now, where you want to go and what's currently getting in the way.
Book a confidential 30-minute conversation with Lydia to explore whether CEO & Business Owner Advisory could add value to you and your business.